


relámpago

by Addison R (beyond_belief)



Category: National Treasure Series
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Hurt/Comfort, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-19
Updated: 2014-12-19
Packaged: 2018-03-01 22:18:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2789696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beyond_belief/pseuds/Addison%20R
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Riley gets kidnapped, rescued, and snuggled in that order.</p>
            </blockquote>





	relámpago

**Author's Note:**

  * For [I_is_a_freak](https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_is_a_freak/gifts).



"You know, Ben, I used to think I knew what I wanted out of life," Abigail says, kicking her way through a thick, green, glossy tangle of leaves. Water drips from the canopy above them onto her face, but it feels good in the heat. Ben steps over a fallen branch ahead of her, then turns and gives her hand over. "I had a plan," she tells him. "I had a _list_."

"And then you met me, and all your lists went to hell," he infers, and correctly.

Abigail glares at him. "Yes."

"Please, tell me if I'm wrong: I warned you we might be trekking through an island jungle to find Riley, and you still wanted to come along."

That is _not_ the point Abigail was trying to make. "I'm forty years old and we're hacking our way through this jungle with machetes," she says. "It's not the finding Riley part I'm upset with, Ben, I would do that no matter where we had to go. But don't you ever find yourself wanting a life that's a little more stable than this?"

Ben has to whack through a stubborn mess of vines to go further. Abigail waits, feeling like this punctuates her question well. Ben looks over his shoulder at her once he's swept the chopped-up vegetation out of their path. "You mean, settle down? We tried that, remember? We sucked at it."

"Again, not the point I was trying to make," she mutters. The canopy drips more water onto her face. 

"What was on your list that's so important you're suddenly missing it now?" Ben asks. He holds out his hand to help her over another fallen branch, but doesn't let go once both her feet are on the soggy ground again. Then he gives her an inquisitive look. "Are you all thrown off by the fact that Riley's practically living at our house, and keeps looking at us like he wants to fuck us?"

"There is that," Abigail admits, her heart beating a little faster. "I'm not sure what to do about that."

She thinks back to the weekend, lazing around the kitchen drinking coffee, talking with Ben about how Riley's been in and out of the guest room for more than a month. She was halfway done with her crossword before he'd wandered downstairs in pajamas and bare feet, pillowcase lines across his face. He whined for a minute about how she and Ben got up too early and how he needed all the coffee, but he made them breakfast without complaint. 

Abigail's pretty sure she could get used to that.

"His lease is up next month, and it's not like we don't have the room." Ben squeezes her hand and adds quietly, "We could give it a shot?"

She ducks under another tangle of vines, asks, "You want to?"

"Might spice things up," he laughs, then laughs harder when Abigail gestures at the jungle as if to say, _this isn't exciting enough?_. But she feels an old tingle of anticipation, the same thrill she'd gotten when she found her first Washington campaign pin. 

"I love you," Ben says. "In case you thought -"

"No, I know," Abigail hurries to reply. "I love you, too, and that was never a question. I guess it's only that five years ago I never imagined this is where I'd be in life. And definitely not a question I'd be contemplating."

Ben grins at her slyly. "But it's fun, right?"

Abigail tries not to look at the spider crawling over the tree to her left. "Let's just find Riley and get off this damned island, and then we'll take him up on his offer."

*

Riley is on the floor of the cave, wrapped in a sleeping bag. He barely moves when they rush in, only turning his head to squint at them in strong beam of Ben's light. "They wrecked my Ferrari," he says mournfully.

"I'll buy you a new Ferrari," Ben says as Abigail drops to her knees next to Riley, running her hands over his arms and legs. 

"Are you hurt?" she asks. He's got a black eye and a bruise on his jaw, but she doesn't see any blood so far.

"This isn't how I dreamed about you feeling me up," Riley mutters, then yelps and jumps as she touches a place that obviously hurts. "Okay, yeah, that's tender."

Abigail ignores the fact that she's blushing and starts unzipping him from the sleeping bag as Ben checks the rest of the cave, flashlight beam sweeping back and forth. There's a small pile of MREs and bottled water, a tarp, and a bucket in the corner. Abigail can hear water whooshing somewhere. "How long have you been in here?" she asks.

Riley struggles to sit up. His left arm is in a makeshift sling. "Uh, a couple days? I think. Hard to tell, they put something in front of the cave opening when there wasn't one of them in here with me."

Ben comes back with all the MREs and bottles of water, and kneels on Riley's other side. "How many of them are there?"

"Four? Five, maybe?"

"Did any of them have guns?"

"I didn't see guns, but that doesn't mean they didn't have any." Riley sucks in a sharp breath as Ben does something to his wounded shoulder. "I can't believe you guys came to find mmph-" The rest of it is cut off because Ben is kissing him. 

"Oh, good," Abigail murmurs, and watches for a moment before she sets about unzipping the rest of the sleeping bag. At least the bad guys had given him something to sleep on, instead of just the dirt and rocks.

"Can you walk?" Ben asks Riley once Abigail's gotten him untangled.

"You should have asked that before you kissed me."

"Riley."

"I can walk. Only my shoulder is broken," Riley says as they help him stand up.

"It's not broken, just dislocated," Ben replies, quickly packing the food and water in his bag, then taking Riley's uninjured elbow again. "I can pop it back in for you, once we're out of here. Come on."

Riley doesn't move. "What about the treasure? You guys know there's a treasure, right?"

"We know. You're more important," Abigail says, putting an arm around his waist to steady him over the loose rocks. They follow Ben out of the cave.

"It's worth like _a billion_ dollars."

"You're more important," Ben echoes. "And it's not a billion dollars. Now come on, I don't know how long this guy out here will stay unconscious."

Riley pauses to look down at the fallen guard. "Did you punch him?"

"Ben hit him with the flashlight," Abigail says. She can't help but smile at that. "The plane is on nearly the other side of the island, though, and I really don't want to camp in the jungle again."

They make it about halfway before it gets too dark to see. Riley's fading, leaning heavily on Ben with nearly every step. "I think we should stop," Ben says quietly to Abigail, and she has to reluctantly agree. There's a large rock formation ahead they can shelter under, and if they can manage without a fire, no one will be able to spot them. 

Ben's brought the sleeping bag and the tarp from the cave, and he and Abigail each have their own, so they help Riley to sit down on a flat rock before spreading one of the tarps and zipping all three of the sleeping bags together. Abigail feels entirely gross, all her clothes sticky with sweat and humidity, but she feels better than Riley looks. She presses her canteen into his good hand. "Riley, here, you need to drink something."

"Thanks, Abby," he sighs, unscrewing the top carefully.

She watches as Ben rigs one of their tarps to the rock with climbing anchors, making a shelter of sorts. Inside of it, she helps him spread out the now-giant sleeping bag. It's almost pitch black under the tarp and stone, but outside of it, there's still a little light. Abigail rips open a couple of the MREs and passes out the food. "I'm so tired suddenly," Riley mumbles as she sits next to him to prop him up. 

"All the adrenaline's worn off," Ben says with a soft smile. He breaks a cracker in half and offers Riley a piece. Instead of taking it, Riley opens his mouth. Abigail watches as Ben sets the piece of cracker on his tongue. 

After chewing and swallowing, Riley grimaces and announces, "That cracker was gross. What else is there?"

"I'm not surprised he got punched in the face," Ben says to Abigail, as Riley says, "Hey!" and then leans heavily against her, exhaustion obviously crashing into him again. 

She squeezes his hand and says, "I have Combos, want some of those?"

"Yes, please."

Abigail feeds him Combos until he can't chew through the yawning, then makes him drink half a bottle of water. Ben digs some beef jerky from his endless pack of random survival things and he and Abigail eat that while they watch Riley doze sitting up. "He seems okay," Ben says quietly, reaching to screw the cap back on Riley's bottle of water before it can fall over and spill. "Aside from the shoulder and the face. I was worried they'd rough him up more."

"We just have to make it the rest of the way across the island."

"We'll make it." Ben reaches over to tuck a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. "Come on, let's get some sleep."

Riley rouses when touched, grumbling. Ben carefully checks his shoulder once more before they all crawl into the sleeping bag, Riley arranged to Ben's liking in the middle. Gently, Abigail combs the hair back from his face in the humid near blackness. "I wanna go home," Riley sighs. "I hate this island. Unless we find the treasure, and even then it's just okay."

Ben huffs a laugh. "We're not worried about the treasure, we're worried about you, okay? And we'll go home in a few hours. Well, to Florida first."

"If I can't have gold statues, can I sleep in your bed?"

It's too dark for Abigail to see Ben's face, but she can feel his arm around Riley's waist, feel the muscle flexing under her fingertips as she squeezes his forearm. "Yeah, Riley," Ben murmurs. "You can."

*

They almost get caught going back to the plane in the dim light of dawn. Abigail freezes with her back pressed to the trunk of a damp tree, her heart beating wildly, as one of Riley's kidnappers goes past where the three of them are motionless in a shady grove. She can hear him hacking through vines with a machete, grumbling under his breath. 

She glances over at Ben. He's holding the gun, and he gestures at her not to move. Crouched next to him, Riley looks a little wild around the edges, clearly trying his hardest not to move a muscle. 

The guy continues muttering uncomplimentary things about hostages who escape, but his voice fades quickly, and when Abigail risks a glance around the tree again, she doesn't see him. "Okay, let's go," Ben whispers, helping Riley up and keeping the hand not holding the gun on his waist. 

They'd camouflaged the plane the best they could after they'd landed, and thankfully it looks undisturbed. She and Ben clear away the branches and vines, disturbing birds that voice their annoyance in tiny chirps. 

"Are you sure you don't want to look for the treasure?" Riley asks as Ben helps him climb into the small plane.

"I'm sure, Riley."

"Gold, Ben. Jewels. Candlesticks."

Abigail sees Ben grin at Riley, laugh lines creasing his dirty face. "I've got all the treasure I need right here on the plane."

"That's sappy, man. Wait, what?" 

Ben shuts the door, and Riley looks at Abigail for explanation. 

"When we get home," Abigail promises, putting her arm around Riley and guiding him to lean against her, sweaty grossness be damned. "Get some sleep now, okay? Ben's going to fly us to Florida. Just rest."

He tucks his head against her shoulder. "You came to find me," he breathes. 

"Yes." She kisses his temple. 

"I hoped you would," he says through a yawn. Abigail hugs him a little tighter, sorry that it had taken them a few days, hoping that he'll always have faith in them. 

From the pilot's seat, Ben looks over his shoulder and says, "Ready to take off, you guys okay?"

"Onward, Jeeves," Riley mumbles, waving, and then falls asleep a second later. Thankfully, no one shoots at the plane.

*

The hotel's concierge stares at them openly for a second before composing himself and taking Ben's offered credit card. "Is your room service twenty-four hours?" Ben asks him.

"Yes, sir. We do also offer a complimentary laundry service."

"We'll probably need that," Ben says dryly. "Hiking," he offers by way of explanation.

"I fell down," Riley adds.

Abigail hides a smile behind her hand. She can't wait to get out of her sticky shirt and khakis, take a shower, and wash the mud out of her hair. "Is there a mall nearby?" she asks the concierge. "I think I need new shoes."

"Yes, ma'm, just four blocks west." He hands Ben two keycards, a stack of extra bar soaps, and three free toothbrushes, and tells them to have a good day.

In the elevator, Abigail eyes Riley critically, just as she's been doing every hour since the plane lifted off the island. The bruise on his jaw is even more stark, so it must have happened not long before they found him, but the black eye is yellowing and fading around the edges. There's a fresh scrape on his arm from tripping over some rocks, but it's not deep, more irritated skin than actual wound. She's sort of worried there are more bruises hidden by his clothes, but she figures she'll find out soon enough. 

Once Ben opens the door to their room, Riley makes a beeline for one of the beds, but Ben catches him by the back of his shirt. "Shower first," he says. He gives Riley one of the toothbrushes, then a small shove towards the bathroom. 

Abigail takes her shoes, socks, and disgusting slacks off and leaves everything in a heap before sitting down on the bed. "No one has any clothes to put on after we all shower, are we going to answer the door for room service wrapped in sheets?"

Ben raises his eyebrows and grins, but turns to look in the closet. "There are robes. But only two, so one of us gets a towel for the night."

"Fair enough. We should have gone to the mall first."

"This is our excuse to hide out in the room while our clothes are laundered," Ben says, taking off his own shoes and socks. Somehow he's less covered in dirt than she is, which really isn't fair. 

There's the sound of the shower starting, then Riley singing off-key. Abigail shakes her head and gets up to find the room service menu. "Order one of everything," Ben says, wrapping his arms around her from behind. 

She leans back against him. "I might."

"I'm serious." He presses a kiss below her ear. 

The noise of the water stops and they hear "Ow, ow, ow," and Ben calls, "Riley, you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just tough getting out of a shower when your arm is broke!" Riley yells back.

"Your arm isn't broken," Ben replies. He lets go of Abigail, though, and says, "I'll make sure he's not hanging from the curtain." 

"A very good plan. And you might as well take the next shower."

Ben smirks. "We'll make Riley be the one in the towel."

"Also a good plan," she laughs as he goes into the bathroom. 

Riley comes out a minute later with a towel wrapped around his waist. He looks more alive now despite the scrapes and bruises. "Oh, God, you're seeing me naked," he says, coughing a little, and Abigail rolls her eyes. 

"Let me make sure you're okay," she says softly, running her hand along his arm. 

Riley sighs and turns around slowly. There's nothing she hasn't already seen besides a constellation of bruises on his back, she figures from the dislocated shoulder and the bed made of rocks. She touches them gently and Riley shivers. "Abby -"

"It's okay," she breathes. "Sit down and get the blankets around you, get warm. What do you want to eat?"

He climbs carefully under the blankets of the closest bed. "Meat."

Abigail feels justified in dropping the room service menu on his face. 

*

"So I have a surprise," Ben says, once everyone's pushed plates and trays away. Abigail feels like she won't need to eat for two weeks, she's so full. For room service, the cheesecake had been fantastic. Riley's lying next to her on his back, hands on his stomach, smiling dopily. She wants to kiss him, so she does. He makes a happy sound and kisses back. 

"That's not my surprise," Ben interrupts.

Abigail smiles at him. "Maybe it was mine."

"More, please," Riley says, sliding his hand hesitantly down her arm and curling their fingers together. Abigail leans in and kisses him again, hearing Ben's half annoyed, half delighted "Hey!" in the background. Riley laughs into the kiss, his hand warm on the back of her neck. 

"Guys, my _surprise_ ," Ben whines at them.

Abigail breaks away from Riley, laughing. "Please, tell us what it is, and then come over here."

"He probably likes to watch," Riley says, and Abigail doesn't shiver, she _doesn't_ , suddenly intensely aware that Riley's only got a towel under the blankets and she's in just a hotel robe that barely reaches her knees. 

Ben huffs at them and crouches to rifle through his pack. After a second, he tosses something shiny up onto the bed, and then another thing, and then a handful of things. "Oh," Riley breathes, scrambling forward. He loses his towel along the way and Abigail almost looks away, then decides she doesn't have to. "Look, Abby," Riley says.

There are a dozen gold coins, a necklace and bracelet heavy with rubies, and another dozen loose gems, some as big as Abigail's knuckles. "You didn't bring the solid gold life-size Virgin Mary?" Riley asks Ben, who grins. 

She picks up the necklace, tracing the stones. "Where did you find this?"

"In the back of the cave Riley was in," Ben answers with another smile, stretching his arms above his head and looking at them smugly. "Back behind the water, there was a cutout in the stone. I felt around in it, looking for weapons Riley's kidnappers might have hidden there, and instead I found a leather satchel with all of this in it."

She follows that to the logical conclusion. "So they'd already found some of the treasure."

"And then I stole it." Ben walks over and takes the necklace from her hands. "You should put it on," he says softly, and carefully fastens it around her neck. The gold links and set stones rest heavily over her collarbones. 

She reaches up to touch it as Riley says earnestly, "You look beautiful."

"Thank you, Riley."

"The bracelet, too," Ben says, and clasps it around her wrist. "Perfect."

"I feel like some sort of rich man's kept woman, in a bathrobe and jewels," she laughs. 

Riley snorts. "Instead you're the only one of us with an actual job." He moves carefully around the coins and gemstones still on the bed to get to her as Ben says, "Treasure hunting is a job, Poole," his voice coming closer like he's moving towards them.

"Not legitimate at all," Riley murmurs, clearly doing it to get Ben all worked up. Abigail's laughing, pulling Riley toward her as he unties the terrycloth belt of the robe. The coins clink as Ben climbs into the bed with them, still making indignant noises until he's close enough to press his face to Riley's neck. 

Riley sighs, smiles over his shoulder at Ben. Then he looks at Abigail again and says, "This is legit, though, right? You're not messing with me?"

She traces the bruise on his jaw. "Not for all the buried treasure in the world."

**Author's Note:**

> I tried to make this more action-adventure-y, but the logistics of the rescue got the better of me and I figured I should stick more to cuddling. 
> 
> Title is Spanish for "flash of lightning" and was the name of a ship apparently involved in the Cocos Island treasure.


End file.
